Colorado Offers Exchange ‘Assister’ Money To Many Groups

Obamacare in Colorado is getting down to the details, in dollars and cents.

Colorado's State Capitol by Jesse Varner via Flickr

One of the 16 states that is setting up its own online insurance marketplace, Colorado on Monday named 58 organizations it’s selected to form its “assistance network” to help residents sign up for health coverage on the exchange. But just 11 organizations are getting all the money they applied for, and it’s unclear how many of the 58 will accept the grants they’ve been offered. That may mean gaps in reaching all corners of the state, or specifically targeted populations, such as refugees, rural Latinos, or the disabled.

Boulder County is being offered $350,000 to operate the most populous hub in eight counties including and surrounding Denver, home to more than 3.5 million people.

In contrast, a hospital in Alamosa in the southwestern part of Coloradois being offered $168,000 to operate in 11 of the state’s least populous counties, with a total of only 281,000 people. Over half live in Pueblo county alone, and just 710 in mountainous Mineral County.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that no organization that applied for funding got all the money it asked for. In fact, 11 organizations did. There are also six, not five, regional hubs and Boulder County is operating the most populous one.

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Colorado Offers Exchange ‘Assister’ Money To Many Groups

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